


your embrace, healing my wounds

by dykerey



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: But Mostly Comfort, F/F, Hair Braiding, Hurt/Comfort, Post-Canon, They love each other, i havent finished so if its wrong dont kill me, no spoilers for crimson flower i dont think
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-20
Updated: 2019-09-20
Packaged: 2020-10-24 22:02:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,360
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20713235
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dykerey/pseuds/dykerey
Summary: "I suppose that’s how I knew I loved you.”“How?”“Because I could sleep after I talked to you,” Edelgard says simply.





	your embrace, healing my wounds

**Author's Note:**

> title is from "till death" by japanese breakfast
> 
> fun fact: i wrote this at work today after waking up at 4am abruptly and scribbling down "edeleth tenderness hair braiidnf edelgard panic? HAIR RBBSUHING BEHIND EARVeyr soft basically I'll take care of you it's rotten work no it's not not if it's you VERU HOW DO I KNOW I LOVE HER BECAUSE I CNA SLEEP AFTER I RALK TOHER"
> 
> i do NOT own the how do i know i love her quote, that is from the incredible series the raven cycle by maggie stiefvater and it is my favorite quote ever
> 
> the line about edelgard's hair being a halo is inspired by [this](https://twitter.com/Watoreon/status/1165753388878970880) amazing art . it is NSFW so warning for that
> 
> follow me on twitter @ganseylesbian if u enjoy lots of spam and lots of art retweets? and on tumblr @ganseyactivist
> 
> unbeta'd as always

The halls are quiet, with the silence that usually accompanies nighttime blanketing the monastery. Byleth’s afraid to break it, almost, so she takes care to step softly in an effort to maintain the quiet. Her room is only a quick walk down the hallway, anyways; just a few dozen feet and there’s her door, oak and sturdy and strong. Typically, she would just spend the night in Edelgard’s room, but with their wedding quickly approaching, Hubert has taken it upon himself to protect El’s reputation and has insisted that Byleth stay in her own room for the time being.

Which, really, is fine. It’s not like Edelgard is busy all hours of the day with every tiny matter that pops up. She entertains anyone’s company; regardless of class, appearance, belief, Edelgard sees them all, and does her best to help them out of whatever hole they’ve dug themselves into. She’s a good ruler, a fair ruler, and Byleth is so truly, incredibly proud.

But damn it all if she doesn’t want to sink into Edelgard’s arms just this once. She misses her (soon-to-be) wife: her obscenely long hair and the way it catches on anything and everything when it’s down, her quiet laughter when Byleth whispers a particularly dirty joke into her ear, the pure and unadulterated fondness in her eyes every time she looks Byleth square in the face. It may have been fate that brought them together, but Byleth had chosen Edelgard, and she’s never once found it within herself to regret her decision.

“Fuck it,” Byleth murmurs under her breath, and she promptly turns around and books it back to Edelgard’s door. She doesn’t bother to mask her presence this time; it’s nearing three in the morning, and anyone who’s a light sleeper is just going to have to suffer. She gives one, two knocks, and Edelgard opens the door almost immediately.

“I – my love, you’re not supposed to be here,” she whispers, her robe hanging off her shoulder. Her hair is wild and the bags under her eyes are enormous. Byleth knows if anyone sees Edelgard like this, she’ll never recover, so she nudges El back and shuts the door behind her.

“I know. I don’t care. I needed to see you.” Byleth says, and then squints at her fiancé, who seems to shrink beneath her searching gaze. “You’re not sleeping well. Are you having those night terrors again?”

Edelgard huffs out a sigh, her cheeks tinged pink. “Some days I think you know me better than I know myself.” She takes a minute to adjust her robe, sliding it back up her arm to cover the exposed skin Byleth had been trying and failing not to eye. “Yes, I was awake. I can’t seem to sleep well without you around. Silly, I know, but I just have so much to do, and our wedding is so soon… What if something goes wrong?”

“I’ll be there so it’ll be perfect,” Byleth responds, startling a laugh out of Edelgard. When El doesn’t respond, she continues, taking her lover’s hand. “We’ve been planning this for months, El. I promise you everything will be fine. Regardless of whatever happens in these next few weeks, I still very much intend on marrying you so we can start our lives together, and I hope you feel the same.”

“Of course, I do, my angel. You know I do. But you also know how I worry,” Edelgard responds, squeezing Byleth’s hand. Byleth’s gaze is fond, she’s sure, so she takes her other hand and brushes Edelgard’s hair behind her hair, her palm lingering on her cheek. “Do you think you could sleep with me tonight? If only just for an hour or two?”

Byleth gives her a soft smile and guides her over to the bed. It’s clear she’s been tossing and turning; the covers are all askew, and the pillows are rumpled. Not at all the bed of the Emperor of the Adrestrian Empire, but Byleth likes how Edelgard drops the act around her. There are no titles, no duties, no crown; just El and By and the love they share. It’s whispered promises, Edelgard’s hair like a halo spread out around her head on the bedsheets, and a side of her that only Byleth will ever get to see.

“Sit down, El. Let me braid your hair.” Byleth suggests, and Edelgard complies, crossing her legs as Byleth settles behind her. She grabs a brush from the table beside the bed and begins running it through El’s long, soft hair. She melts immediately, and Byleth watches the tension drain from her shoulders. Edelgard, as much as she claims she’s not very affectionate, took to Byleth brushing her hair like a fish to water. Even massages can’t get Edelgard nearly as relaxed, and Byleth always feels privileged that she’s allowed to see Edelgard this vulnerable. She always feels closest to Edelgard sharing moments like this, where it’s just the two of them.

When Byleth has deemed her hair combed enough to begin braiding, she places the brush down on the bedside table and sinks her fingers into the white waves in front of her. Edelgard visibly shudders, and Byleth takes a moment to press a kiss to the back of her neck.

Edelgard’s voice is shaky when she says, “I love you.” Byleth’s mouth finds her way to El’s jaw and presses a kiss there, too, and then she pulls back and starts to braid.

Byleth’s never been an expert braider, but over the year she’s gotten good enough to experiment with different styles. Tonight, she decides on a simple Dutch braid. It was the second style she had ever learned, so she focuses less on technique and more on making sure Edelgard is completely comfortable. Each pass through her hair is as soft as possible, and Byleth does her best to avoid yanking a strand too hard. Every once in a while, she asks, “Feeling okay?” to which Edelgard laughs and responds, “With you? Always, my dearest.”

When she gets to the bottom, she says, “Hand me a ribbon?” Edelgard’s hand reaches backwards to the bedside table, knocking the brush down in the process. Eventually her fingers happen upon a ribbon, and Byleth accepts the ribbon with ease and finishes the braid off.

Edelgard twists around, her legs still crossed, and presses a kiss to Byleth’s lips. “Would you like me to return the favor, my angel?”

“Another night, maybe,” Byleth responds, bringing Edelgard in for another kiss, deeper this time. She can feel Edelgard melt beneath her mouth, and the urge to keep going roars alive inside of her. She quashes it; it’s much too late to go and start anything like that, not when El’s droopy eyelids point to the fact that she’s prone to pass out at any moment.

Edelgard pulls back, her lips red and swollen. Byleth guides her down and then lays back herself, cupping herself around Edelgard so they’re spooning. El leans back into her and Byleth’s arms make their way around her waist.

Byleth’s eyes start to close, and she can feel sleep begin to overtake her. A few more minutes of silence pass before El says, “You know, you’ve always been the only one that could get me to calm down and sleep. Even back in our monastery days, if I was having trouble sleeping, I would come to you and suddenly everything felt okay again. I suppose that’s how I knew I loved you.”

“How?”

“Because I could sleep after I talked to you,” Edelgard says simply, and she twists back around so they’re face to face. “I love you,” she says again, and Byleth feels her lips touch her nose before she twists around again, her back against Byleth’s chest.

“Sleep well,” Byleth says into her neck, and Edelgard gives a quiet laugh, then a deep breath, and she’s asleep before she knows it. Byleth follows soon after, into the world of dreams where she isn’t the reincarnation of a god and Edelgard isn’t the ruler of an entire empire, but just Edelgard and Byleth. It’ll have to do for now.


End file.
